Magnetic tapes are widely used for storage of information, such as in sound and video tape recorders. One device for handling and storing magnetic tape is a cassette. Typically, a cassette includes two reels adjacently positioned for rotation within the cartridge and spaced apart a sufficient distance to allow the magnetic tape to be wound and stored on the reels. The magnetic tape is fed from one reel to the exterior of the cassette for interfacing with a recorder or player. The tape is then fed back into the cassette for storage on the other reel.
Such cassettes are generally much larger and bulkier than the magnetic tape contained and stored within the cassette. To provide economical interface with recording machines, the cassettes are usually manufactured in a standardized size to fit the recording machine. The standardized size is often many times larger than necessary to store and handle the desired length of magnetic tape. Thus, for a variety of reasons, the cassette is usually bulky in comparison to the reels of magnetic tape contained therein.
In many businesses, such as the insurance business, statements and other information are recorded on magnetic tape rather than in written form. Often, it is necessary to store the magnetic tapes in a file for future reference. Although cassettes are convenient devices for storing and handling magnetic tape during the recording process, the cassette is bulky and not well suited for storage in conventional files. Thus, magnetic tape has been previously reeled out of the cassette shell for separate storage in a file.
When the magnetic tape is reeled or pulled out of the cassette shell, it is possible to tangle or otherwise damage the tape. Also, it is a tedious operation to remove the reels of magnetic tape by reeling. Therefore, a need has arisen for an improved cassette that allows easy removal and replacement of the magnetic tape for storage in a separate file. Such improved cassette would eliminate or reduce the inefficiencies associated with previously known techniques for removing magnetic tape from standard cassettes and would enable the user to reload the cassette with new reels of magnetic tape. Use of such improved cassette would thus result in savings of time and money.